The Leadership Journey

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JamBerry Ltd

Tuesday, 30 September 2014

Storytelling in business has really taken off in the last
few years, but whilst we may understand the need to tell a story knowing how to
start it can sometimes be a bit trickier. So here are a few tips on ways to
start a story:

1.Imagine…

Probably one of the most evocative ways to get someone’s attention
is to get their imagination working.Imagine... works really well if you want to tell a “visionary” story,
taking people to a place that perhaps they haven’t explored before. And
depending on the follow up words you can take them to a wide variety of places
and times. Imagine if… Imagine when… And then to make the story really powerful
you need to show the audience the link between their leap of imagination and
the reality of where they are now. So for example, imagine there was a new fuel to run cars on – and then show them a picture of a prototype and a path to take it from
now to the future.

2.I remember when…

This opening invites the audience to look at where they have
come from and how much has changed (hopefully for the better). This a great way
to remind people of the obstacles that they have already overcome and the put
things into perspective. Sometimes people need reminding that they are making
progress.

3.I was walking down the street the other day…

You were in the middle of doing something ordinary when
something extraordinary happened. It happens to people all the time, they are
getting on with their lives when something happens that changes, interrupts and
generally makes an impact. This can be a great starter for a story which is
about a journey or about getting from where you are and going to where you want
to be.

4.It is a universal truth…

Starting with a provocative or unusual statement which makes
the listener stops and think. They may or may not agree with your statement,
but either way they will be tuned in to what you say next.

5.Life is like a box of chocolates…

Here we have both a quote and a metaphor. Quotes are great
(but don’t over use them). Metaphors are a way of getting people to think sideways
and open up their thinking to the story you are going to tell them. They can
help provide some distance between the same old thinking and a new approach.

6.I get really mad when…

This starts with an emotion – an emotion you would like to
draw your audience into. This is an invitation to get mad, to get excited, to
get involved. It draws people in to what you are about to say next,
particularly when delivered with passion.

7.We
are at the beginning of the end…

Paradoxes, where a statement seemingly contradicts itself
are a way to show how two different contradictory thoughts can be held at the
same time. In doing so they help change perspective and help open up our minds
to alternative options.

Friday, 8 August 2014

Just too late:
Learning after the event – not the best option as you are always playing catch
up and can be downright dangerous! In Health and Safety for example, just too
late was too late to stop the factory burning down.

Just in time: Quick,
bite sized learning where you have access to it when you need it. Characterised
by short videos that show you HOW TO: eg repair something, improve your
interview skills before the event, deal with giving feedback to a colleague, or
even how to use a fire extinguisher.

Just in case:
Learning in advance skills that take time to master. For example: leadership
skills are not something that you can learn over night as they consist of many
parts. Some skills take practice such as Presentation Skills and often benefit
from having a coach or someone to “hold your hand” during the learning process.
Even with H&S learning how to have the right culture and signage prevents
accidents from happening.

Wednesday, 5 February 2014

Remember Aunty Rose who doesn’t stop talking? Or Uncle Jack
who loves to tell funny stories? How many times have you heard the story
about….?

A Good Listener is Like a Good Dancer

A good dancer works with their partner, making the moves seem seamless. It is a skill that takes time to develop as anyone who has watched Strictly Come Dancing will know.

Active listening is also skill which takes time and effort to
develop. It is not passive and takes commitment from the listener. Active
listing shows that you value what the other person has to say and can encourage
other people to talk.

Active listeners have freed their minds and made a
commitment to absorb what the other person has to say so that they can respond
appropriately. They do not make assumptions about what the other person is
going to say – and therefore allow them to finish their sentence.

Active listeners:

·Show interest

·Request information

·Obtain understanding

Here are the five rules to active listening

·Pay attention.

oGive
the speaker your undivided attention and acknowledge the message. Recognize
that what is not said also speaks loudly.

oLook
at the speaker directly.

oPut
aside distracting thoughts. Don’t mentally prepare a rebuttal!

oAvoid
being distracted by environmental factors.

o“Listen”
to the speaker’s body language.

oRefrain
from side conversations when listening in a group setting.

·Show that you are listening.

oUse
your own body language and gestures to convey your attention.

oNod
occasionally.

oSmile
and use other facial expressions.

oNote
your posture and make sure it is open and inviting.

oEncourage
the speaker to continue with small verbal comments like yes, and uh huh.

·Provide feedback.

oOur
personal filters, assumptions, judgments, and beliefs can distort what we hear.
As a listener, your role is to understand what is being said. This may require
you to reflect what is being said and ask questions.

oReflect
what has been said by paraphrasing. “What I’m hearing is…” and “Sounds like you
are saying…” are great ways to reflect back.

oAsk
questions to clarify certain points. “What do you mean when you say…” “Is this
what you mean?”

oSummarize
the speaker’s comments periodically.

·Defer judgment.

oInterrupting
is a waste of time. It frustrates the speaker and limits full understanding of
the message.

oAllow
the speaker to finish.

oDon’t
interrupt with counter arguments.

·Respond Appropriately.

oActive
listening is a model for respect and understanding. You are gaining information
and perspective. You add nothing by attacking the speaker or otherwise putting
him or her down.

oBe
candid, open, and honest in your response.

oAssert
your opinions respectfully.

oTreat
the other person as he or she would want to be treated.

Active listening is just one aspect of good communication skills. The more you practice the better you will get at it.

Wednesday, 19 June 2013

In my experience working with
organisations there are three factors behind most organisational conflicts:

1.
Differences in behaviour and communication styles

2.
Differences in priorities and values

3. Workplace conditions,
including poor communications from leaders

Some personalities just seem to
clash. It's important to determine why two people rub each other the wrong way.
Do they have opposing behavioural styles?

For example, an extrovert who
is open and expressive could view an introvert as hard to read and perhaps
untrustworthy. Likewise, a time-conscious, highly organised employee may
harshly judge a spontaneous colleague. Someone who is highly analytical and
precise might view an intuitive person as impulsive and flaky.

Teaching team members to
understand basic human differences can help them overcome tendencies to judge
and make assumptions. They can learn to accept coworkers’ differences. Consider
using any of the commonly accepted assessment tools, such as PRISM or Belbin.

Workshops
provide another option. An extrovert can learn to ask questions to draw out an
introvert. The highly organized team member can learn to set more realistic
deadlines.

Understanding personality
differences can help prevent clashes and conflicts before they become ongoing
problems.

People have different needs,
values, beliefs, assumptions and cultural frameworks. Our expectations are fed
by past experiences. If you erroneously assume that others are essentially
mirror images, your lack of clarity can create strife.

Leaders and teams must explore
others’ expectations, assumptions, underlying values and priorities. This can
be accomplished in group or individual sessions, led by a manager or coach.

When there is an elevated
degree of conflict, it's wise to retain a professional
who is trained in interpersonal skills and mediation.

Behind every complaint is an
underlying value that goes unsatisfied. Asking questions like “What’s really
important here?” often allows people to uncover competing values and
priorities. You will facilitate more authentic conversations when you ask the
right questions.

What do you
think about these ideas? What do you see as a major source of conflict in your
organisation?

Thursday, 6 June 2013

Are
you planning a TeamBuilding event? If you are here are some of the things you need to
think about.

1.What
do you want to achieve? When
arranging an event it is important to ensure that you are clear about your aims
and objectives for the event. Is it an event where you want the team to get to
know each other better and have some fun? Is that your sole objective? Or do
you want something more? If it is something more what are the desired outcomes
you have for the event?And how are you
going to measure if the event has been successful?All of these are questions you need to ask
before you can decide on the type of event that you are going to arrange. If
you are not sure, talk it through with your facilitator and event organiser to
help you to clarify the intentions.

2.How
long have you got available?
Realistically there is only so much you can achieve in an afternoon or even a
full day. So don’t set your ambitions too high, but make sure they are
realistic and practical. Remember that if you are not holding an event onsite
(which is always the best option) you may need to allow travel time. In
fact, why not make the travel part of the day and book a coach or mini bus to
pick everyone up?3.Budget. Whilst money may not be your main
concern, everyone wants to feel that they have got value for money. When
organising your event, make sure your event organiser has a realistic
understanding about your budget and be prepared to discuss it with them. Good
professional organisers will not try and sell you something you can’t afford
and will help you to maximise your budget to get the best possible event.4.Number
of people. The number of
people you have coming to the event can make a big difference to what works and
what doesn’t. Make sure that your event is suitable for the size of your group5.How
adventurous are your team?
There are vast number of different types of team building events available now,
so you don’t need to run outdoor activities if indoor ones are more suited to
your team, or the weather! Climbing mountains maybe the right answer for some,
but not all. And indoor events need to be equally carefully considered. Whilst
some people love music and drama others may prefer cooking or painting.
Remember that it is not always possible to please everyone in the group, but a
general consensus is helpful. Always bear in mind however, that any experience
outside the norm may make some people uncomfortable – after all that is how we
learn and grow as people.6.Choose
professional facilitation. A
professional facilitator will not only ensure that the day runs as smoothly as possible,
but will also add to the experience by bring his/her knowledge to the event.
Good team events include good set-up and de-briefing by a professional
facilitator. If you are not sure who to choose ask for recommendations from
others. 7.Follow
up after the event. Make
sure that you and your team take on any learning points from the day and start
to work them into your daily routine wherever possible. This might be a
different way of working together or recognition of someone’s skills that were
not appreciated before. Whatever it is, make sure that the team event is part
of an on going process in your organisation. Not a one off jolly!

Team
events should be productive, energetic and fun. Make sure yours gets your team
fired up and enthusiastic!

Monday, 25 February 2013

If your team is struggling or seems to have got stuck, it may be for one of the following reasons.

1.Inappropriate Leadership. Lack of structure or clear
leadership can lead to a team becomingdysfunctional and/or resistant. This in turn can lead to a high turnover
of staff and without intervention disbandment of the team as being non
-performing.

2.Unqualified team members. Teams need to
both have the appropriate technical skills as well as a balance to the
necessary roles. If team members are lacking in basic skills, they need to have
the appropriate training or be moved on.

3.Unconstructive Climate An effective
team needs to have an open climate that bridges differences and encourages
individuals. If team members become defensive or secretive the team will
struggle to thrive. Important issues must be openly discussed and resolutions
found wherever possible.

4.Projection and scapegoatingwhere the teams problems are being caused by
"external influences". By making others part of the problem the team
is adopting a "it wasn't me" attitude.

5.Dominance of one or more personality/ behaviour types. It is not uncommon for the leader
of a team to recruit "someone like them" or "someone who fits
in" who consequently adds to the teams skills and strengths in a
particular area, but does not necessarily address any gaps the team may have.
Lopsided teams can often find it difficult to move forward.

6.Teams , like the people within them, have a sense of self-esteem. Low self esteem can be a result of
many things but might include: lack of drive, lack of recognition, lack of
pride in their work. If their perception isone of low self esteem, they will find it difficult to develop and move
forward.

7.Low creativity. Teams that are allowed to explore their creativity are more flexible in
their approach and quicker to solve problems than those that are asked to
deliver things in a fixed and rigid way. There is a difference between setting
and measuring standards for particular tasks and preventing any creativity in
achieving them. Harnessing creativity requires a level of risk and clear risk
assessment should go hand in hand with the creative process.

Friday, 18 January 2013

Whilst over the past few years organisations have been
sitting on their budgets and rationing training more heavily than usual, the
trend for 2013 seems to be that new spending is on its way. Training (and
marketing) your way out of a recession has often been quoted as the way forward
and as new shoots of growth begin the appear, this can be expected to rapidly
take off.

But the recession has changed the training world. Here are 5
trends that we expect to see more of in 2013.

Trend #1. No longer is it as common to have a class full of
participants who have been sent because "it might be useful". Far
more is the trend towards personalised learning using a wide range of
resources, from classroom based training to on-line and on-mobile
resources.In fact, a training manager is
now far more a resource manager providing knowledge based learning
opportunities. Their role is to find and disseminate learning opportunities and
reinforce learning to ensure it is embedded in the organisation.

Trend #2. Senior executives are taking more interest and
applying more influence in the learning requirements. The potential impact of
learning on project outcomes is being seen as critical as organisations move
forward. Learning initiatives are about increasing the productivity and
effectiveness of the organisation.

Trend #3. Another trend has been the rise of the knowledge
repositories. Using social media, such as closed and open groups on Facebook
and Ning, members of the organisation can share information with their
colleagues. Whilst file sharing has been around for years, opportunities for
sharing content have become much easier and more widespread. Content creators
and curators will become far more important as they collate and collect
libraries of information for use in the future.

Trend #4. All things video are set to dominate over the next
few years. Video traffic reached 51% of online activity in 2010 and is set to
climb to 70-80% by the end of 2013. And with the growth of smart phones and
tablets enabling us to watch video anywhere and everywhere it has to be the key
trend of the year.

Trend #5. And finally, we are seeing the rise of virtual online
video based training. Products such as Livestream, which allow you to join and
watch live events are becoming all the rage.